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Variant Rules

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Xanathar's Guide to Everything

Variant Rules A shared campaign might use some variant rules to handle certain aspects of the game. The Adventurers League, for instance, has variant systems for gaining levels and acquiring treasure

. These “house rules,” presented below, serve as a sort of common language, ensuring that the rewards all characters receive are equivalent no matter what kind of adventure a character experienced.

Amnizu

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

have no personalities or memories; they’re driven only by the desire to commit evil. The amnizus that patrol here drill the rules of the Nine Hells into the new arrivals’ minds and marshal

them into legions. Amnizu (Summoner Variant);Variant: Devil Summoning Some amnizus have an action that allows them to summon other devils: Summon Devil (1/Day). The amnizu summons 2d4

Variant Human Legacy

Species Basic Rules (2014)

If your campaign uses the optional feat rules from the Player’s Handbook, your Dungeon Master might allow these variant traits, all of which replace the human’s Ability Score Increase trait.

Wereraven Legacy

monsters Curse of Strahd

, modestly give money to charity. They take steps to keep magic items out of evil hands by stashing them in secret hiding places. Characters as Wereravens. The Monster Manual has rules for characters

piercing damage (no ability modifier applies to this damage) and carries the curse of lycanthropy; see the “Player Characters as Lycanthropes” sidebar in the lycanthropes entry in the Monster Manual for details.

Bugbear

Species Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

Neither bugs nor bears, bugbears are the hulking cousins of goblins and hobgoblins. With roots in the Feywild, early bugbears resided in hidden places, in hard-to-reach and shadowed spaces. Long ago

formidable build, bugbears are quiet skulkers, thanks to a fey magic that allows them to hide in spaces seemingly too small for them. Creating Your Character At 1st level, you choose whether your

Young Dragon Turtle

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

explicitly include dragon turtles in the variant rules for making a dragon a spellcaster, you can apply those rules to these aquatic dragons.) Dragon Turtle Personality Traits d8

Dragon Turtle Wyrmling

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

characters, and use the Dragon Turtle Spellcasting table to help select spells for a spellcasting dragon. (Though the Monster Manual doesn’t explicitly include dragon turtles in the variant rules for

making a dragon a spellcaster, you can apply those rules to these aquatic dragons.) Dragon Turtle Personality Traits d8;{"diceNotation":"1d8","rollType":"roll","rollAction":"Trait"} Trait

Geryon

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

–6). As a reaction when this creature takes damage, it can roll a d10 and subtract the number rolled from the damage. Geryon (Variant);VARIANT: SOUND THE HORN Geryon can have an action that

; (see the Monster Manual) to appear in unoccupied spaces of his choice within 600 feet of him. The minotaurs roll initiative when they appear, and they obey his commands. They remain until they die

Geryon Legacy

Monsters Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes

. If Geryon dies, these effects fade over the course of 1d10;{"diceNotation":"1d10","rollType":"roll"} days. VARIANT: SOUND THE HORN Geryon can have an action that allows him to summon enslaved

minotaur;minotaurs. Sound the Horn (1/Day). Geryon blows his horn, which causes 5d4;{"diceNotation":"5d4","rollType":"roll","rollAction":"Sound the Horn"} minotaur;minotaurs to appear in unoccupied spaces

Noble Legacy

Backgrounds Basic Rules (2014)

your line or even a spiritual member of the family? These details help establish your family and your title as features of the world of the campaign. Skill Proficiencies: History, Persuasion Tool

. Variant Noble: Knight A knighthood is among the lowest noble titles in most societies, but it can be a path to higher status. If you wish to be a knight, choose the Retainers feature (see the sidebar

Criminal / Spy Legacy

Backgrounds Basic Rules (2014)

than most people to the world of murder, theft, and violence that pervades the underbelly of civilization, and you have survived up to this point by flouting the rules and regulations of society

; specifically, you know the local messengers, corrupt caravan masters, and seedy sailors who can deliver messages for you. Variant Criminal: Spy Although your capabilities are not much different

Noble - Baldur's Gate

Backgrounds Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus

your line or even a spiritual member of the family? These details help establish your family and your title as features of the world of the campaign. The patriars of Baldur’s Gate live in the

; without question, and any corruption among guards or government officials tends to work in your favor, not against you—at least until you make some effort to expose it. Variant Noble: Knight A

Reborn Legacy

Species Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft

Memories table to inspire its details. Lost Memories d6 Memory 1 You recall a physically painful moment. What mark or scar on your body does it relate to? 2 A memory brings

, but you aren’t any longer. You now possess only your lineage’s racial traits. When you create a character using a lineage option, follow these additional rules during character creation

Orcus Legacy

Monsters Out of the Abyss

creatures whose combined average hit points don’t exceed 500. These undead magically rise up from the ground or otherwise form in unoccupied spaces within 300 feet of Orcus and obey his commands

chapter 7, "Treasure” of the Dungeon Master’s Guide.Orcus’s Lair Orcus makes his lair in the fortress city of Naratyr, which is on Thanatos, the layer of the Abyss that he rules

Orcus

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

creatures whose combined average hit points don’t exceed 500. These creatures magically rise up from the ground or otherwise form in unoccupied spaces within 300 feet of Orcus and obey his commands

Dungeon Master’s Guide.Orcus’s Lair Orcus makes his lair in the fortress city of Naratyr, which is on Thanatos, the layer of the Abyss that he rules. Surrounded by a moat fed by the

Ancient Dragon Turtle

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

table to help select spells for a spellcasting dragon. (Though the Monster Manual doesn’t explicitly include dragon turtles in the variant rules for making a dragon a spellcaster, you can apply

those rules to these aquatic dragons.) Dragon Turtle Personality Traits d8;{"diceNotation":"1d8","rollType":"roll","rollAction":"Trait"} Trait 1 I speak slowly and deliberately

Inheritor

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

determine your inheritance from among the possibilities in the table below. Work with your Dungeon Master to come up with details: Why is your inheritance so important, and what is its full story? You might

prefer for the DM to invent these details as part of the game, allowing you to learn more about your inheritance as your character does. The Dungeon Master is free to use your inheritance as a story

Arasta

Monsters Mythic Odysseys of Theros

attack with her claws. Swarm (Costs 2 Actions). Arasta causes two Swarm of Insects (Spiders) ;swarms of spiders (see the Monster Manual) to appear in unoccupied spaces within 5 feet of her. Toxic Web

within her hair, and sacrificing themselves in her defense if they must. See “Myths of Nylea” in chapter 2 for more details on the tragedy of Arasta. Arasta as a Mythic Encounter Arasta

Draconic Races

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

section offers three variant dragonborn race options that can be used to create a character with clear connections to a specific draconic ancestry. When you’re making a new character using one of these races, use the rules under “Creating Your Character” to fill out the details.

Criminal - Baldur's Gate

Backgrounds Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus

underbelly of civilization, and you have survived up to this point by flouting the rules and regulations of society. Skill Proficiencies: Deception, Stealth Tool Proficiencies: One

always occur in shady venues. Variant Criminal: Spy Although your capabilities are not much different from those of a burglar or smuggler, you learned and practiced them in a very

Rewards

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Xanathar's Guide to Everything

Rewards Adventures in a shared campaign that uses variant rules for gaining levels and acquiring treasure (such as those described below) don’t include experience point awards or specific amounts and kinds of treasure.

Creating a Dragonmarked Character

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Eberron: Rising from the Last War

Creating a Dragonmarked Character Dragonmarks manifest on certain members of a few species, represented in the rules by variant race options: For humans and half-orcs, a dragonmark is a variant race

that replaces traits associated with those races. For half-elves, a dragonmark is a variant race that lets you keep some half-elf traits and replace others with the traits associated with your mark

Human Traits

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player's Handbook (2014)

HUMAN TRAITS If your campaign uses the optional feat rules from chapter 6, your Dungeon Master might allow these variant traits, all of which replace the human’s Ability Score Increase trait

with, including obscure dialects. They are fond of sprinkling their speech with words borrowed from other tongues: Orc curses, Elvish musical expressions, Dwarvish military phrases, and so on. VARIANT

The Joy of Extradimensional Spaces

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Candlekeep Mysteries

The Joy of Extradimensional Spaces The Joy of Extradimensional Spaces An Adventure for 1st—level Characters Written by Michael Polkinghorn Edited by Hannah Rose The Joy of Extradimensional

Spaces was donated to Candlekeep with the rest of the library of the mage Fistandia, following her untimely disappearance. In her will, Fistandia bequeathed her collection to Candlekeep in appreciation for

Izzet Engineer

Backgrounds Guildmasters’ Guide to Ravnica

basic knowledge of the structure of buildings, including the stuff behind the walls. You can also find blueprints of a specific building in order to learn the details of its construction. Such

blueprints might provide knowledge of entry points, structural weaknesses, or secret spaces. Your access to such information isn’t unlimited. If obtaining or using the information gets you in trouble

Operating an Airship

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Eberron: Forge of the Artificer

Eberron. Supplementing the rules for vehicles in the Player’s Handbook, this section details rules for handling airships. The rules for specific ships appear later in this chapter.

Tying Knots

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Xanathar's Guide to Everything

Tying Knots The rules are purposely open-ended concerning mundane tasks like tying knots, but sometimes knowing how well a knot was fashioned is important in a dramatic scene when someone is trying

Sleight of Hand with Intelligence, rather than Dexterity. This is an example of how to apply the rule in the “Variant: Skills with Different Abilities” section in chapter 7 of the Player’s Handbook.

Rest Variants

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)

Rest Variants The rules for short and long rests presented in chapter 8 of the Player’s Handbook work well for a heroic-style campaign. Characters can go toe-to-toe with deadly foes, take damage to

within an inch of their lives, yet still be ready to fight again the next day. If this approach doesn’t fit your campaign, consider the following variants. Epic Heroism This variant uses a short rest

Strength

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Basic Rules (2014)

lift. For a Tiny creature, halve these weights. Variant: Encumbrance The rules for lifting and carrying are intentionally simple. Here is a variant if you are looking for more detailed rules for

determining how a character is hindered by the weight of equipment. When you use this variant, ignore the Strength column of the Armor table. If you carry weight in excess of 5 times your Strength score, you

Activating a Magic Item

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->D&D Beyond Basic Rules

Activating a Magic Item It usually takes a Magic action to activate a magic item. The item’s user might also need to do something special. The description of each item category or individual item details how an item is activated. Certain items use the following rules for their activation.

Strength

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player's Handbook (2014)

a Tiny creature, halve these weights. Variant: Encumbrance The rules for lifting and carrying are intentionally simple. Here is a variant if you are looking for more detailed rules for determining how

a character is hindered by the weight of equipment. When you use this variant, ignore the Strength column of the Armor table in chapter 5. If you carry weight in excess of 5 times your Strength score

Activating an Item

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Basic Rules (2014)

details how an item is activated. Certain items use the following rules for their activation. If an item requires an action to activate, that action isn't a function of the Use an Object action, so a feature such as the rogue's Fast Hands can't be used to activate the item.

Chapter 4: Personality and Background

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Basic Rules (2014)

that class and race define. This section expounds on the details that distinguish characters from one another, including the basics of name and physical description, the rules of backgrounds and languages, and the finer points of personality and alignment.

Chapter 4: Personality and Background

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player's Handbook (2014)

that class and race define. This chapter expounds on the details that distinguish characters from one another, including the basics of name and physical description, the rules of backgrounds and languages, and the finer points of personality and alignment.

Using This Book

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Ravenloft: The Horrors Within

adventures. Chapter 2 details prominent Domains of Dread, along with their Darklords and adventures within. Chapter 3 provides tools for Dungeon Masters running horror adventures, including ways to

develop frightful campaigns and rules for Haunted Bastions. Chapter 4 explores how Dungeon Masters can create their own Domains of Dread. Chapter 5 reveals allies and enemies that might appear in

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